La Cañada Valley Sun

Portantino tapped to head state Senate Appropriations Committee

State Sen. Anthony Portantino was appointed chair of the California Senate Appropriations Committee, Senate President Pro Tempore Toni Atkins announced Friday. (File Photo)

State Sen. Anthony Portantino (D-La Cañada Flintridge) has been appointed chair of the California Senate Appropriations Committee, a panel responsible for reviewing the fiscal impact of hundreds of Senate and Assembly bills each legislative session.

Senate President Pro Tempore Toni Atkins (D-San Diego), who was sworn into the senate’s leadership position in March, announced Portantino’s selection to the committee Friday. His appointment was made official when the Senate Rules Committee, where Atkins serves as chair, convened Monday.

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“I have a long working relationship with Senate Pro Tem Atkins, who’s a personal friend and a colleague, and I’m honored to have her trust,” the senator said in a phone interview Wednesday. “This puts me in a position to serve the 25th District as well as the state.”

As chair, he will oversee the committee as it determines whether to move proposed bills forward or hold them in committee. Portantino serves nearly 930,000 residents living in California’s 25th Senate District, which includes La Cañada Flintridge, Glendale, Burbank and Pasadena, among other Foothills communities.